Testing the structural resilience, among other factors, of any possible habitat is also crucial. As the official website goes on to explain, this would include a dynamic light system to create an artificial circadian rhythm for its inhabitants, solar panels, 3D-printed interiors, a vertical farm and an algae-based life support system, among other things. In June, Nasa announced a “lunar loo" challenge, seeking design ideas for toilets that are “capable of working in both microgravity and lunar gravity".ĭanish space architects Karl-Johan Sørensen and Sebastian Aristotelis are working on the “Lunark Habitat", which seeks to combine origami-the ancient Japanese art of paper folding-with biomimicry to design a lightweight and strong foldable structure that will feel like a tank from the outside but will have enough features inside to support long-term stay in space. Ice, for example, has a compressive strength of around 3-4 MPa," says Kumar.Įvery element of a lunar habitat will need to take into account a host of factors-the Moon’s gravity, for instance. “At the moment, we have gone till 2.5 MPa (megapascal), which is still at the lower limit of where we would want to be. The IISc team is also analysing the material’s “compressive strength"-testing the stress it can take. The next step in the development of these “lunar space bricks" is to test their use in interlocking structures and see whether they can hold.
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